Betty Ford buried in Michigan following final remembrances

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. - With a military honor guard carrying her casket, Betty Ford returned Thursday to the church where she and her husband, Gerald Ford, were married more than 60 years ago, a wedding that launched the unassuming Michigan couple on an unexpected path to the White House.

The former first lady's children were joined for the final memorial by prominent political figures and hundreds of mourners from Ford's hometown of Grand Rapids. Outside Grace Episcopal Church, mourners stood in hushed silence as nine pallbearers removed her casket from a hearse while softly counting out military cadence.

Inside, at the podium, son Steven Ford described the family's bond, referring to them as a naval fleet.

"Dad was the aircraft carrier. I know that," he said.

"If Mom was in our fleet, which she was, she was the hospital ship. She was the one there with the love and the comfort."